Homework for Week 1!

Ali Goldaper
Aug 26, 2017 · 3 min read

Having next to no experience of computer science outside of a 101 class in college (where I programmed a “chicken jumping contest” as my final project), I have decided to challenge myself to taking a “Programming for Non-Programmers” class on One Month. My first assignment was to “Interview Two Developers.” In a moment of panic (“Do I know even ONE?”) I made my first Facebook status post in a long time. I requested aid.

My friends delivered.

It seems as though I know many more programmers than I first believed. When a friend described their computer-related jobs, I had a tendency to…not tune them out, but have trouble processing the job description. The vocabulary suddenly began slotting into place.

The first question I was supposed to ask was “How did you learn to code?” Three of the four of my friends learned coding in either college or grad school. One began teaching himself in high school as he tried to create a game that would run on his TI-83 scientific calculator. Another learned due to necessity, as she learned animation and creative “WYSIWYG/ What You See Is What You Get” website creation.

Next, I asked, “What advice would you have for someone learning to code for the first time?” All four of them seemed to agree on this, though Fred* phrased it best: “This is kind of like cooking, sometimes the creative endeavor will turn to sh*t very quickly. My biggest piece of advice is, patience. People think this is about talent. It’s not. How much of your pride can you swallow if you keep getting an error message over and over and over again. It’s not talent, it’s stubbornness.” Joe agreed, “ …it’s important to understand that programming is a skill. Some people are good at it naturally, but most of us need to practice.”

“ Would you work with me on a project? Why?” I then asked. All four agreed. Fred’s answer, “ Why not? I don’t understand. I could use the extra help. It’s fun to work with other people.” and Tanya said, “ Yes I would work with you! Objectively because you are a curious and detailed person, who likes to find the right solution for things. I know you don’t do things half way. You do things right, and you communicate them forward.”

When I asked, “What qualities do you look for when you hire a developer?” all four agreed again. “Do I feel like in a stressful situation I would want to work alongside this person? Do they have a basic grasp of structures and algorithms,” claimed Fred. Joe said that he looks for, “ A good team player, sounds cliche, but it’s really important for software development. [Also,] Self-teaching. Programming is a constantly changing field and to succeed a person needs to constantly spend time learning new skills and polishing old ones.” Sydnee mentioned that she, “ [doesn’t] hire but I think the ability to learn something new whenever needed even if it brings you out of comfort zones, someone who can work well with others (since most software projects will be collaborative efforts), someone who can communicate effectively, someone who can think a problem through and find a creative solution would be things I’d look for in hiring.”

Lastly, I was to ask, “If you and I were to work together, what skills do you think I most need to improve right now?” Fred told me that I should “ be nicer…no, more forgiving to yourself,” while Sydnee added that, “don’t be afraid to fail and fix something.”

This whole class so far has been an immensely informative experience, and I’m thankful that I have these wonderful people to back me up.

*Names changed to protect privacy of friends.

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